


Spring Break Kind Of Sucked Until It Didn't

by perfect_plan



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M, Spring Break, Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-13
Updated: 2016-03-13
Packaged: 2018-05-26 11:44:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6237298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perfect_plan/pseuds/perfect_plan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Spring Break at Tony Stark's Malibu estate hasn't really been Steve's idea of fun so far, until he finds another Spring Breaker looking to find something a little quieter in a vacation too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Spring Break Kind Of Sucked Until It Didn't

**Author's Note:**

> Full Disclosure: I'm a Brit so all of my ideas about Spring Break come from movies and The Lonely Island's Spring Break Anthem (some of it, anyway!). I just wanted to write fluff.

Steve tried not to spill his beer as he made his way through the mass of bodies dancing on the huge patio, attempting not to grimace too much when a particularly drunk dancer elbowed him or when he could feel someone's cocktail slop over his bare feet. He had agreed to come to Tony's Spring Break party because he'd worked his ass off for the last semester and needed to get away; he hadn't quite realized just how many people would be here. It was like one of those annoying MTV shows he always flipped past with a disinterested grunt.

Don't get him wrong, it was extremely generous of Tony to not only fly him out from New York to Malibu and put him up in his ridiculously huge house too, but it was his third day here and he was already getting exhausted from the dance parties, drinking and the constant throng of people. He was also getting a lot more attention than he would have liked; he'd been hit on so many times that anyone else would have been ecstatic but Steve had always been the self-conscious sort. He was 6"2 and 240lbs (a lot of it muscle) but he'd always been a little shy despite other people thinking he was outwardly confident. He'd made somewhat of a breakthrough today though, having traded several flustered "Oh, I'm flattered but no thank you," for a blunt but pleasant "I'm gay" whenever a girl came up to him with a smile or, in one uncomfortable instance, had tried to wrestle his t-shirt off of him.

All he wanted now was someplace quiet to sit and relax. The house had been a bust; he didn't want to go and sit up in his room which had it's own en-suite and lock (thank God), but the mansion was overflowing with bodies and Steve had started to feel closed in. He finally made it through the throng of dancers and slipped away to explore the rest of the grounds. He couldn't believe this was all Tony's; he had grown up in a tiny two-bed apartment with his mom in Brooklyn and he wouldn't know what to do with all of this space, although Tony's idea of using it was to constantly fill it with people whenever he could it would seem.

"Rogers, you need to learn how to relax," Tony had said last night when Steve had tried to hide out in the kitchen away from the party. "You need to get laid."

"I'm not looking for this trip to be a...a sex fest," Steve had replied uncomfortably.

Tony had gawped at him for a few seconds and had then burst out laughing. " _Sex fest_ , oh my god. Pepper! Pepper, Rogers just said sex fest!" he had shrieked into the sun room (one of six) and Steve had ducked out and back to his bedroom to sulk, feeling guilty that he wasn't enjoying himself when other people didn't even get the chance to go away for spring break, and then felt miserable for feeling miserable.

The truth was it _had_ been a while since he'd had sex but Steve didn't do hook ups. He was a package deal kind of guy. He was sometimes envious of people who could do the whole casual thing - it must be nice to have that kind of confidence - but he was a little old fashioned and wanted sex to come after friendship and dating and all the other stuff that he found exciting about getting to know someone. Sex was just another part of the whole thing for him and he just couldn't imagine himself walking up to a guy here and propositioning him.

So he decided to try and make this _his_ idea of a spring break and stop being a sad sack. Steve strolled through the tennis courts where a game of strip tennis was being played by the looks of it, wandered past pool number two which was smaller but still filled with shrieking partygoers and skirted the miniature golf course. He was about to give up on looking for anywhere free of people when he rounded the corner of the stables and was struck with a beautiful view of the sea down below Tony's sprawling grounds. He stopped and listened: it was quiet save for the now-distant thump of the bass and he felt like he could breathe again. _This_ was the kind of spring break he'd been hoping to have. There was a small cabana set in a little garden across the immaculate lawn and he headed towards it.

He had just reached it and breathed out a sigh of relief but saw that someone was already using it. A guy with chin-length brown hair was reading a book, a huge cocktail on the table next to him. His legs were sprawled out on the chair in front of him and like Steve, he was wearing a modest tee and knee length shorts. He looked up as Steve stood there, trying not to look too disappointed that the cabana was occupied.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't realize this was taken." He made to walk off but the guy put his book down.

"It's not like I own the place. You can sit here. Just be warned, if a gaggle of morons with music follow you in, I'll never forgive you."

Steve grinned. "Nope, just me." He stepped under the thatched roof into the shade and flopped down onto the lounger next to the guy with a grateful nod. The view of the sea from here was just as amazing and he sat back and took a deep breath.

"You too, huh?"

Steve turned to the guy. "Me too?"

The guy jerked a thumb in the direction of the music, now barely audible. "Had enough?"

"Yeah," Steve said, relieved that someone else wasn't in the party mood. "I like parties but I think three days solid has tested my limit."

The guy laughed. "You lasted one day more than me. I was ready to leave yesterday but the person who dragged me here and paid for my flight is adamant on staying and I can't afford another ticket home."

Steve chuckled. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Tony paid for me to come out here and he'd never let me hear the end of it if I said I wanted to leave now." He nodded at the view. "This is more what I was hoping for."

The guy held out a hand. "I'm Bucky."

"Steve. Are you a friend of Tony's?"

"Not really. My friend Nat is and bought my plane ticket as a gift because I "need to learn to relax and not spend all of my time working." Call me crazy but I can't relax surrounded by hundreds of screaming people."

"Me neither," Steve said. "Tony pretty much said the same thing to me. His idea of relaxing is my idea of a heart attack."

Bucky laughed. "You and me both, pal. So how do you know Mr Big Shot?"

Steve took a swig of his beer and settled into the lounger. "I go to NYU and his dad lectures there about his business and patents. Tony stands in for him sometimes and we kind of became friends. Well, _he_ decided he wanted to be my friend; I barely had a choice in the matter. His heart is in the right place though."

"I've spoken to him like three times. I don't think he even knows who I am yet he's given me his food and drink and always asks if I'm set, even though me and Nat are staying at a hotel. Must be nice to have that much money."

Steve hummed. "I think he tries too hard sometimes but I can't fault him on his generosity."

Bucky picked up his cocktail and battled his way through the garnishes to the straw. "So you're studying in New York? Me too. I'm at Columbia."

"No kidding," Steve smiled. "I grew up in Brooklyn. Didn't really want to be too far from my mom."

Bucky barked out a laugh. "I lived in Brooklyn until I was twelve! Small world."

They chatted about Brooklyn for a little while and Steve was finally starting to feel completely at ease; this was nice - being able to have a conversation with someone and not have to strain to hear them or shout to be heard.

"So yeah, even though I loved spending my teen years in Connecticut, I realized just how much I missed New York when I came to college. I'll probably stay after I graduate."

"I couldn't imagine living anywhere else," Steve said. "I mean, it's stunning out here and the constant good weather must be nice but I feel so out of place."

Bucky grinned. "Dude, you fit right in with those guns and that blond hair. I thought you were Californian all the way until you spoke and I could hear that you were from back East somewhere."

Steve was surprised to find that he was secretly pleased instead of uncomfortable when Bucky mentioned his looks. He groaned. "If I start wanting to add kale to everything, stop me please."

Bucky laughed warmly and they both enjoyed the view again.

Steve nodded at Bucky's book, still resting on his knee. "Anything good?"

Bucky showed the cover to Steve. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking.

Steve chuffed. "Wow, some light vacation reading there."

Bucky gave Steve a cheerfully indignant look. "Funny. I take this bad boy everywhere with me. Whenever I feel like I'm letting the little things get to me or I'm getting worked up over things that don't matter, reading this kind of puts everything into perspective for me."

Steve was impressed despite himself. "And it really works?"

"Every time." He passed the book to Steve and he read the copy on the back cover.

"I don't know; realizing my place as a blip in the universe might make me feel even more pathetic."

Bucky chuckled. "You can't think of it like that." He twisted in his lounger to face Steve. He had wide grey-blue eyes and a grin that lit up his whole face. "The fact that you exist at all is a fucking miracle in itself. Everything that's happened since the Big Bang until now is crazy to comprehend and you're _a part of it_. Well, that's how I think about it anyway."

Steve smiled. "That's kind of cool. Maybe I'll use that next time I feel down."

Bucky leaned back. "It works for me. I was pretty bummed out about half an hour ago but I guess I should have been paying attention to all of this - " he indicated to the sea and the spotless blue sky - "to make myself feel better. Thanks for crashing my cabana and making me put down my book."

Steve kicked off his flip flops and took a gulp of his beer. "We're just a couple of blips enjoying the view."

Their laughter floated out into the still afternoon air as the bass continued to thump up at the house.

***

They talked for a couple of hours; Steve was having the best time since he arrived here. Bucky was smart and funny and seemed to be enjoying himself too.

"Dammit, I'm getting kind of hungry," Bucky said after he'd eaten all of the fruit embellishments in his cocktail.

Steve took his phone out of his pocket and looked at the time. "Jeez, it's nearly 7pm. Want to hazard a trip back to the house and see if there's any food on the go?"

Bucky stood up and stretched. "Sounds like a plan." He picked up his empty glass and book and they started to head back in the direction of the ever-present music.

"Thanks for letting me crash your cabana," Steve said as they passed by the now empty tennis court.

"My pleasure. It was nice to actually have a conversation with someone about something other than how much you can drink before passing out." Bucky gave him a bright grin.

The patio was still full of revellers and they managed to make their way over to the huge barbeque where one of Tony's house staff was cooking burgers and hotdogs. They waited in line and each got a couple of things before grabbing some more food from the large buffet table and finding a corner to stand and eat, watching the crowd.

Steve brushed his hands free of crumbs when he had finished. "Can't fault the food here."

Bucky nodded in agreement, still chewing the last of his burger. There was a beeping noise and he grunted and fished his phone out of his shorts pocket, reading a text message. He gave Steve an apologetic look. "Whoops. Six texts and two missed calls from Nat wondering if I'm dead." He quickly responded. "She wants to head back to the hotel and I don't have a key."

"Think you might come back later?" Steve asked.

"Hopefully, if I can talk Nat into it. Will you be around?"

"Yeah," Steve answered, pleased that he'd made a friend. "I'm staying in the east wing of the house so I can't escape."

Bucky laughed and clapped Steve on the shoulder. "I'll look for you. See you later." He walked off into the crowd.

Steve went up to his room and locked the door behind him, relishing the quiet. He realized that he was smiling. He took a long hot shower, singing to himself as he washed his hair and afterwards lounged on his bed with his towel wrapped around his waist, flipping idly through the channels on the huge wall-mounted flatscreen. He settled on a re-run of Cheers and let his mind wander. He'd had a really good day today.

***

Three hours later and Steve made another round of the patio and pool before giving in to his disappointment; Bucky wasn't here. He wished he'd gotten his phone number but then he would have seemed a little too desperate to hang out and he didn't want that. Who knows - maybe Bucky had been trying to shake him off. Steve didn't really think that was the case (he _hoped_ it wasn't) and he decided to call it a night, a little down that the one person he thought he had connected with maybe wasn't coming back. He trudged back through the house, ignoring Tony's shout of "how goes the sex fest, Rogers" and got ready for bed. He opened one of the beers in the stocked mini-fridge and drank it on the balcony, the muffled sounds of the party drifting up to him from the other side of the property.

Steve toasted the night air. "Here's to letting another one get away," he said softly to himself.

***

The next morning, Steve awoke early and got changed into his running gear. Yes, he was on vacation but he hated slacking when it came to his exercise routine. Chances were the house and grounds would be fairly quiet at this time of morning and he wanted to make the most of it. He tied up his running shoes and made his way down to the kitchen where he ate two bananas and grabbed a bottle of water, intending to have a proper breakfast when he got back.

He had just stepped out onto the patio when he heard a pleasant, "Good morning."

He turned and Pepper was sat on one of the wicker chairs, feet tucked under her and her laptop on the table beside her, smiling at him.

"Hi Pepper," Steve said. He liked Pepper and had no idea how someone so level-headed and grown-up could happily be in a relationship with someone as high maintenance as Tony Stark.

"Off for a run? That's dedication."

Steve laughed softly. "I'm a creature of habit." He pointed to her laptop. "Working on vacation?"

Pepper sighed. "Unfortunately. I try and get some hours in before the hordes arrive."

"I don't know how you keep up," Steve said.

"Well, when you're in a relationship with Tony Stark you learn how to spin a few hundred plates at once." She sipped her coffee. "I hope you've been having a good time, Steve. I know Tony's teasing can get a bit much."

Steve chuffed. "He does like to tease me, that's for sure. To be honest, I hadn't really been feeling the whole Spring Break thing but I had a great day yesterday."

Pepper raised an eyebrow. "I thought I saw you sneaking off on your own. What were you up to?"

"Oh, I just found...a quiet spot. It was nice." He didn't include the part about the very cute guy (of course he had noticed how attractive Bucky was - how could he not?) who also inhabited that particular spot even though he knew that Pepper wouldn't say anything to Tony.

"Well, I hope you have a good day today too," she said with a sly smile. "Enjoy your run."

Steve said thanks, not thinking for a second that he'd fooled her. He headed towards the pathway that would take him down to Tony's private beach, warming up first before he started to jog. It was a gorgeous morning; the sea was calm and clear, the sky a dazzling shade of blue. Steve ran on the damper sand next to the surf breathing in the sea air as he went. He loved running; any time he was stressed or ill at ease, running helped to clear his mind and bring him back down to earth a little. Kind of like Bucky's book, he thought. He felt another pang of disappointment that Bucky hadn't come back to the house last night but then concentrated on his breathing and not trying to make himself feel miserable.

Steve ran a ways onto the public beach, getting a few admiring glances and a wolf-whistle from two girls walking a dachshund before he decided to turn back, glad that his face was red from running and was covering up his mortified blushing. He walked by the gentle waves for a few minutes catching his breath and then started to jog back towards Tony's place. He noticed a figure up ahead walking in the surf with sneakers swinging at his side and his heart started to beat a little faster.

Bucky raised a hand when Steve was a couple of yards in front of him, a warm smile on his face. "Hey!" he called.

Steve returned the smile and waved back, slowing down to a walk as he approached. "Hey yourself. What are you doing out here?"

"Looking for you," Bucky said.

Steve wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand. "Oh yeah?" he said, glad that the excitement he was feeling wasn't too apparent in his answer.

"I got a cab to Tony's and Pepper said you might be out here somewhere. I'm sorry I didn't come back last night; me and Nat pretty much crashed out and I realized I hadn't asked for your number to let you know." He tucked a strand of brown hair behind his ear.

Steve was over the moon but tried not to show it. He _hadn't_ scared Bucky away. "I had to listen to Pink," Steve said, shaking his head sadly, hands on his hips. "A _lot_ of Pink."

Bucky laughed. "Oh no! And I thought the daytime music was bad. In that case I'm really sorry. What can I do to make it up to you?" He gave Steve an adorably imploring look.

Steve smiled. "Want to hang out today?"

Bucky pointed a sneaker at Steve. "As a matter of fact, that was my very mission in finding you. I have a plan. Want in?"

"Totally," Steve said with a grin.

"I propose we steal a bunch of food and drink from the house and hole up in the cabana all day. If anyone else discovers it, we'll run away and hide somewhere like grown-ups who attend Columbia and NYU would do. We could even try to build a secret fort to hide in. Because we're mature adults. What do you think?"

Steve laughed and nodded. "I like that plan. We'll be Spring Break Hermits together."

They shook on it and started to walk back towards Tony's house together, discussing the pilfering of provisions.

"I need to grab some breakfast and have a shower but I can hit the kitchen on the way back," Steve said. "Can you handle the buffet tent?" Because of course Tony had a buffet tent set up all day to feed people he didn't know.

"I think I can use my powers of stealth in the buffet tent," Bucky said with a confident swing of his sneakers.

They got within sight of the house and made a plan to meet at the cabana in an hour.

"Looking forward to it," Bucky said with a crooked grin. He saluted Steve and headed off towards the house.

Me too, Steve thought.

***

Steve stumbled into the kitchen, intending to make some oatmeal and down a quick cup of coffee but was met with and angry glare from one of Tony's kitchen staff, a middle-aged woman who looked just about done with all the "house guests." Steve's breakfast had been brought up to him the last few days and he stuttered a little.

"I'm so sorry to disturb you, ma'am. I just wanted to make myself a bowl of oatmeal and I'll be out of your hair. I'll clean up."

But whether it was because he looked genuinely apologetic or the fact that he'd called her ma'am, she was suddenly ushering him onto a stool at the counter and making him oatmeal with strawberries and blueberries, a cup of amazing smelling coffee and a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon, chattering all the while about how he reminded her of her youngest son.

Steve thanked her and cleaned up despite her protests and then went back to his room for a shower. He put on one of his nicer shirts and didn't bother to style his hair, letting it fall into it's usual side-parting. He packed a small backpack with sunscreen, a towel and whatever drinks were in the mini-fridge and headed down to the kitchen. He asked the lady who had made him breakfast if he could pack some things for lunch and she was already loading a cooler with fruit and snacks and chicken wings and making him some huge sandwiches. Steve had to physically stop her from putting a whole cooked ham in too and thanked her again. He would have to get her some flowers.

He headed out across the patio, a few people already mingling and arguing over the sound system, and made his way nonchalantly towards the tennis courts. Nobody paid any attention to him. He hurried by the smaller pool and the stables and across the garden to the cabana. It was still empty and he set down the cooler and put the stolen mini-fridge drinks in there to chill.

Steve took a minute to look back across the garden to the view of the sea. He wondered if Tony ever realized just how lucky he was to have all of this. Then he thought about how he spent just as much money on other people and how he always seemed to want everyone around him to be happy. He was lucky to have Tony as a friend.

He sat down on one of the lounge chairs and kicked off his flip-flops. A few minutes later, he heard someone approaching the cabana. Bucky glanced cautiously around the side.

"Where you followed?" he whispered loudly.

Steve chuckled. "Were you?"

Bucky ducked into the cabana; he was holding two very full plastic bags full of buffet food and his t-shirt was bulging. "No. I was very careful."

"Yeah, because you look so inconspicuous," Steve said, nodding at his t-shirt.

Bucky put the bags down and reached under the fabric; he pulled out a whole pineapple. "Bet you didn't get one of these," he smirked.

"No I didn't," Steve agreed, "but I bet you haven't got anything to cut it up with." He was a little delighted with how easy things seemed to be with Bucky; he didn't usually do so well with new people.

Bucky's smirk faded. He shrugged and threw the pineapple to Steve. "We'll gnaw our way through it." He saw the cooler. "What the...how the hell did you get that?"

Steve smiled and opened it. "Martha, one of Tony's kitchen staff. I was very polite."

Bucky raised an eyebrow. "A man with skills. Nice."

Steve started to put the buffet food in the cooler as best he could. "I don't have many. Sweet talking middle-aged woman seems to be one of them. Beer?"

Bucky took one and cracked it open on the side of the lounger. "Beer before 12pm? What the hell - we're on vacation, right?"

Steve took a seat and grinned at the whole situation. "We sure are."

They talked about themselves for a while; Steve talked about how his dad had died when he was in elementary school and how he was living on a scholarship and a job proofreading grad papers because he refused to take money from his mom.

"Jeez, I'm sorry to hear that. About your dad," Bucky said softly.

Steve shook his head. "It's okay; my mom and I are close and I have a good bunch of friends. They make sure I don't get lonely during the holidays when my mom has to work double shifts at the hospital."

"Friends like Tony Stark?" Bucky said.

"One time when he found out how much I was living on, he wrote me and my mom a cheque for $10,000. I thought he was kidding and ripped it up. But now, given where I am..." he sighed and indicated to the view, "I don't think he was joking after all."

Bucky smiled. "Regretting throwing away easy money?"

"More like realizing that it was a shitty thing to rip it up like it meant nothing when I think it was a very considerate and generous thing to do. I can't help but think I made him feel like crap when I all but threw it back at him. In little pieces."

Bucky's face softened. "You didn't mean it like that though. I wouldn't know what to do if someone just offered me that much money, no strings attached."

Steve hummed. "I guess. I think that's why I let him tease me so much."

"Oh yeah? What does he tease you about?"

Steve groaned a little. "My stance when it comes to sex. As in I'm apparently very _old fashioned_. I think one of Tony's intentions in getting me here was to see me _relax_ , in a manner of speaking."

Bucky's mouth quirked up in a smile. "And have you? _Relaxed_?"

Steve smiled sardonically. "Not my bag. I'm considered prudish by Spring Break accounts."

"So you're a date and dinner kind of guy. Nothing wrong with that," Bucky said and took a drink of his beer.

"How about you? Have you...relaxed?" Steve asked.

Bucky smiled and winked at him. "Nah. I'm more of a dinner and date kind of guy."

Steve chuckled. "So there are a few of us out there."

"Don't get me wrong, I like a good relaxing as much as the next person. I just like to know who I'm relaxing with."

"I spend more time relaxing with myself as of late," Steve mumbled.

Bucky spluttered into his next swallow of beer and laughed. "Nothing wrong with a bit of self relaxing," he finally managed to say, a huge grin on his face. "I've had some of my best times self relaxing."

Steve laughed and shook his head. "Okay, can we talk about something else now?" He glanced over to Bucky who was smiling wolfishly.

"Fine, fine," Bucky said. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I've talked about myself. You talk about you."

Steve listened with interest as Bucky chatted about his family. He was close to his parents and sister and while he had a lot of friends, he spent most of his time studying alone.

"I'm not anti-social, I just like to do things that involve me, a book and a room void of other people," Bucky said a little indignantly. "Nat's angry that she dragged me all the way here and I managed to find the one quiet place to shun human contact."

"You haven't shunned me," Steve said.

"That's because you're not an idiot. I can talk to you for longer than five minutes and not want to run away screaming."

Steve smiled. "Glad to hear it. Tell me more."

Bucky squinched up his face. "I'm not all that interesting. I like movies, I like books. I have a weakness for dogs."

"You spend a lot of time contemplating your place in the universe..." Steve offered. "I think that makes you pretty interesting."

Bucky laughed again. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. Running helps to centre me so it's nice to hear what works for other people."

"I was impressed that you were exercising on vacation," Bucky said. "I've barely done anything."

Steve reached into the cooler and pulled out an apple. He tossed one to Bucky. "I kind of have to stay active. I have a heart condition so I need to make sure I get enough cardio every day." He saw Bucky's face soften into concern again and quickly went on. "It was worse when I was younger. I just have to look after myself." He bit into his apple and turned away, pretending to admire the view. He usually didn't like to talk about how his dad had died and having an illness because the two together tended to garner a certain level of pity from people and he didn't want that. He felt angry with himself that he'd told Bucky.

But Bucky seemed to sense that it was a sore point and bit into his own apple. "Well, I try and keep fit. I don't enjoy it though."

They sat in silence for a little while, enjoying the view and the company. The steady thump-thump of dance music could be heard from the house but it was far away enough to be ignored.

"Hey," Bucky said suddenly. "Let's go for a swim. No-one seems to be making use of Tony's private beach so why don't we?"

"Do you have a swimsuit?" Steve asked, conscious that he was only wearing his boxer briefs under his shorts.

"Nah, but we'll dry off soon enough. Come on." Bucky was up and heading for the pathway down to the beach. Steve grabbed his towel and phone and followed, hoping that the cabana would still be theirs when they got back.

They walked down to the beach and Bucky was right; everyone seemed to be favoring the pools back at Tony's house. The water looked gorgeous - calm and clear. Bucky found a tennis ball in the sand and started to toss it idly in the air.

"Would you look at that," Steve said softly, watching the sun dapple the water with a million sparkles.

Bucky pulled his t-shirt off and tossed it onto the sand. Steve tried not to stare; he had a very nice body. He tucked his phone into one of his sneakers and headed for the water with his shorts on. "Come on, Steve. Don't leave me hanging."

Steve took his shirt off and placed it next to Bucky's, toeing off his flip-flops. He savored the warmth of the sun on his bare skin. Bucky turned around with a smile when he was waist deep.

"Oh man, this water is perfect." His eyes flitted down to Steve's torso for a split-second and Steve felt a momentary thrill mixed in with his usual pang of self-consciousness; he couldn't deny that he was attracted to Bucky and hoped it went both ways. What he would do about it if it _did_ was another matter entirely.

"Think fast," Bucky called out and threw the tennis ball at Steve as he waded in.

It was a hard shot and caught Steve off guard a little and in his haste to grab it, he lost his balance and toppled into the surf. He could hear Bucky laughing as he got back to his feet, blinking salt water out of his eyes.

"Oh, jeez! Sorry dude," Bucky said with a smile that didn't seem all that sorry.

Steve wiped his face. "Like that, is it?" He wound up the ball himself and threw.

Bucky shrieked and dodged to the side, just missing being hit and the ball splashed into the water a few feet behind him. He laughed and scooped it up. "Wow, good arm."

Steve ran a hand through his wet hair and grinned. "I was in Little League."

They threw the ball between them for a while, a little less violently, and laughed and talked. The water was so warm and Steve was completely at ease with this guy he'd only met the day before. After a while they stopped playing with the ball and swam lazily, circling each other and floating on their backs. Steve stared up at the cloudless blue sky.

"So when are you back in New York?" Bucky asked.

"Day after tomorrow," Steve said. "How about you?"

"Same," Bucky said. "To think, yesterday morning I couldn't wait to get back. Now, I kind of want to stay."

Steve turned his head in the water and Bucky was smiling at him. He smiled back.

***

They were both starting to get hungry and decided to head back to the cabana. Bucky swam ahead of Steve and turned around, winding up the tennis ball again. Steve put his feet down on the sandy surface and braced himself.

"Come on, pretty boy. Give me your best shot."

Bucky squawked, a delighted grin on his face. "Oh, you're in for it now." He leaned back and let rip.

The ball sailed clear past Steve as he desperately tried to grab for it. It landed a few metres away and started to bob further out of reach, caught up in an unseen current.

Steve splashed helplessly in the water. "WILSON!" he shrieked.

Bucky burst into a fit of laughter and swan out to him. He grabbed Steve's arm. "He's gone. Come on, I'm starving."

Steve laughed back and followed Bucky to shore. As Bucky stood and waded back through the surf, he dipped his head forward and flung his hair back, droplets of water spraying behind him. Steve thought it was the sexiest thing he'd ever seen and hastily adjusted himself in his shorts but took a few deep breaths and followed Bucky to their shirts. He dried his hair as best he could and his torso and back and handed his towel to Bucky as he slipped his shirt back on.

"Thanks," Bucky said and he started to towel off his arms.

"Our shorts are still soaked," Steve said, watching as the water dripped down his legs.

Bucky put on his t-shirt and pulled his phone out of his sneaker. "We'll dry off."

They got back to the cabana and Bucky sat down heavily on one of the loungers, his shorts making a squelching sound. Steve snorted out a laugh and rummaged in the cooler for the sandwiches, handing one to Bucky before sitting down himself and making a less than savoury wet noise of his own. Bucky snorted back at him, his eyes gleaming.

Steve smiled as he took a bite of his sandwich. This was bad: He was starting to like Bucky a lot but they would both be leaving the day after tomorrow. He also didn't even really know him all that well - he'd only known him for a day really - but still...

Steve liked to think he was a good judge of character and Bucky's character was kind of awesome, all of the things he was usually attracted to: Smart, funny, open. Physical attraction more often than not came second for Steve these days; he'd been attracted to visually striking people in the past only to discover that they weren't very nice personality-wise and had crushes on people not generally considered classically attractive, at least to his peers (another sore point for Steve - who can truly judge what is attractive or not?) but was too shy to ever do anything about it. It had taught him to step back on initial impressions which was difficult. He was all too aware that a lot of people considered _him_ very attractive and he often felt like he had to overcompensate to make them like him for who he was. It could get exhausting. He didn't feel that way with Bucky. Sure, Bucky had checked him out when they had gone swimming but Steve was convinced that Bucky liked him beyond the physical.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Bucky's voice broke Steve's daydreaming. "You look like you're trying to solve a really hard equation."

Steve turned to him. "More like a chicken-egg scenario." He chuckled when Bucky raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't matter. I'm doing that thing where I over-analyse my current situation rather than try to enjoy the moment."

"I can break out the Stephen Hawking if I need to," Bucky offered.

Steve took out some chicken wings from the cooler and two beers. "Nah, I'm good."

They sat and ate and Steve wondered how he could bring up the subject of meeting up with Bucky back in New York without sounding like a stalker or something.

"So, what do we do with the rest of our day?" Bucky asked.

"This seems pretty good to me," Steve replied. "Unless you want to go and play strip tennis or strip water polo."

Bucky scooted down on his lounger. "No, thank you. You're right; this is pretty good." He gave Steve another dazzling smile. "I like the way you think, Steve."

"Likewise," Steve said and couldn't help but smile back.

***

As the day went on, it felt like a date. Well, every date that Steve had ever had anyway. They talked more personally about themselves; Bucky had come out to his family when he was fourteen and had generally had a good experience.

"Well, apart from my grandma. She refused to believe being gay was a "thing" and just kept asking me at family gatherings when I was going to get a girlfriend. One Thanksgiving, my grandpa finally snapped and shouted "For God's sake Annie, the boy likes boys! Just accept it and pass me the god dammed yams!" It was hilarious. She finally kind of got it after that. Yams have always held a special significance for me since."

Steve couldn't stop laughing. "That's amazing. I don't have any family beyond my mom. I came out when I was eighteen and she was really supportive."

Bucky smiled. "I'm glad we both had good experiences. Not many people do."

Soon, between the swim, the sun and the distant noise of the sea and the music from the house, Steve started to feel a little sleepy. He looked over to Bucky to apologize for having gone a little quiet only to see that he'd fallen asleep himself. He had one arm behind his head and was breathing deeply. His brown hair had fallen into his face a little and Steve was overcome by a wave of desire. He had literally only met Bucky the day before but was already feeling the strong pull of attraction towards him. Steve sighed and turned away. He had to be realistic: Could anything come of this? Could he ask Bucky out on a date when they were back in New York? He desperately wanted to. He hadn't really met anyone like Bucky before and he really wanted to see him again after this vacation was over.

 _Slow down,_ _Rogers_ _,_ he told himself before glancing back at Bucky, watching the way his lips were slightly parted in sleep. He lay back further on his sun bed and started to doze, wondering if the perfect time to ask Bucky out would present itself before he had to go home.

***

"Hey, wake up big guy," an amused voice said close to Steve's ear as he blinked his way out of sleep.

"What..." he turned his head and Bucky was kneeling next to his lounger with a big smile on his face.

"Think we both overdid Spring Break. Pathetic, huh?"

Steve snickered and stretched as Bucky pulled out a couple of apples from the cooler. "Sun, sea and sleep. Isn't that what Spring Break is all about?"

Bucky sat on his lounger and snorted. "For us, yeah."

Steve sat up and rubbed the back of his neck, looking out at the view. The sun was low on the horizon. "Do you want to hang out tonight?" he asked, just going for it.

Bucky looked apologetic. "I have to go; plans with Nat. But...tomorrow? Same again before we go back to real life and leave Tony's Dream Land?" He flashed Steve a grin.

"Sounds great," Steve said.

Bucky looked at him, on the verge of saying something but started to gather up their food remnants instead. "Think you'll be able to sweet talk us into some food again?"

Steve stood up. "I don't need to sweet talk. My natural charm is more than enough."

Bucky laughed softly. "Sure is," he said and they made their way back over to the house, eating their apples.

As they were walking across the patio, weaving in-between people dancing and laughing, Pepper flagged them down, a notepad in her hands.

"Hi guys," she said, narrowly avoiding being hit in the face with a beach ball. "Are you coming on the booze cruise tomorrow?"

"The what now?" Bucky asked.

Pepper rolled her eyes. "Tony insisted on calling it that. It's an all-day boat party on his yacht, his end of Spring Break bash. I need to get numbers."

"I can't think of anything I'd dislike more," Bucky said with a wince. "But thanks for asking."

Steve loved boats but he had to agree with Bucky. "I'll give it a miss too."

Pepper tried to hold back a smile as she scribbled in her note book. "No problem. Looks like you might get the run of the place tomorrow. Only a few of you staying behind."

Bucky grinned. "Perfect."

***

Steve lay in bed that night, thinking about the last couple of days. He never usually connected with anyone so quickly. The last person had been Peter and they had been in a relationship for two years but there hadn't been anyone since. He didn't want to admit that he was a little touch-starved but he was; hell, he was only human. He sighed and rolled onto his side. There was still tomorrow.

***

The next day was amazing; all but ten people, including Steve and Bucky weren't going on the booze cruise so the house was blissfully quiet. Bruce, one of Tony's friends who Steve didn't really know, swapped out the dance music for some stuff from the sixties - The Kinks, The Monkees - and turned the volume down. A few people were swimming but mostly everyone was taking advantage of the quiet and dozing contentedly.

Bucky talked Steve into a few games of pool in Tony's rec room and they played and talked. It was so easy with Bucky; he was intelligent and fun and Steve felt like he could be himself, which sounded silly but he always thought that he was living up to some _image_ of himself rather than the real him. Bucky just seemed to like him for who he was. Maybe that was the great thing about this whole situation: Steve didn't feel like he had to downplay or overthink any part of himself. He felt free.

"Why are you grinning, Rogers? You're losing," Bucky said as he leaned cockily on his pool cue.

Steve took his shot, missing spectacularly but grinned even wider. "No reason."

Bucky eyed him as he lined up his own shot. "Fine, you keep your secrets."

"Boy's gotta have a few," Steve said innocently and Bucky flashed that wolfish grin again and took his shot.

"Well, that's the third game in a row I've kicked your ass. Think you can stand another?"

Steve lay his cue across the table. "I don't believe my delicate ego could take it. I could use a swim."

They made their way out to the pool, both prepared with swim shorts today. There were a couple of people floating lazily on inner tubes with drinks but apart from that the pool was empty. The two of them ducked each other and horsed around for a little while but then found themselves at the edge of the pool, arms outstretched on the hot concrete, talking about nothing in particular: Food places they liked in New York, how heavy the workload of the last semester had been for them. Steve crossed his arms and watched Bucky as he talked, treading water languidly with his feet.

Bucky had somehow managed to get two beers from somewhere and passed one to Steve. "So I'm thinking we should look each other up when we get back to New York." He took a swig, gauging Steve's reaction nervously.

Steve's stomach flipped with excitement. "That would be cool."

Bucky held back a smile. "Maybe catch a baseball game, grab some food."

"I'd like that," Steve said.

Bucky finally smiled. "Me too."

***

They stuffed themselves at the buffet and the time seemed to fly by. Steve was all too aware of the afternoon drawing on, already dreading having to go and pack for his 7am flight in the morning. Bucky was leaving later the next afternoon with Nat. He tried to push it out of his mind and enjoy the moment.

Bucky had gone inside to use the bathroom and when he came back, he nodded in the direction of the ocean. "Apparently at dusk, Tony's got a huge fireworks display planned out at sea on another one of his boats. Want to head down to the beach and catch it?"

"Yeah, why not," Steve said and they started to walk over towards the stables and the cabana. "He has _two_ boats? Who the hell needs two boats?"

Bucky laughed. "Tony Stark, apparently."

It was starting to get dark as they reached the private beach and they could see Tony's yacht out in the distance. Bucky flopped down onto the sand and brushed his hair out of his eyes. Steve sat down beside him, resting his arms on his knees, toes digging into the sand.

"I'll miss that view," Steve said softly, drinking in the colors as the sun started to dip below the horizon. The first few stars were starting to blink in the early night sky.

"Yeah, me too," Bucky said but Steve could see from the corner of his eye that Bucky wasn't watching the sunset.

They sat in silence for a little while, the sound of the surf gentle and hypnotic. Suddenly there was a burst of color and a bang as the first of Tony's fireworks lit up the sky.

Bucky sat up, his arm brushing Steve's. "Whoa," he breathed.

The fireworks were spectacular, not that they expected any less from Tony but they were both transfixed. Somewhere during the display, Steve leant back on his arms to better tilt his head back and he was aware that his fingers were brushing Bucky's in the sand. Neither of them moved away.

The fireworks eventually ended and the distant sound of cheering could be heard from the boat out to sea. Everything seemed strangely quiet now, more deafening then the fireworks. The air was heavy with expectation and Steve wasn't sure what to do. He glanced at Bucky. He was sitting close, watching Steve intently.

"That was pretty amazing," he said, his voice low.

"Yeah," Steve agreed. He got the feeling that neither of them were talking about the fireworks. He blurted out, "I should get back. I need to pack. For...for my flight."

He watched as Bucky's eyes flitted down to his lips for a second and then smiled. "Yeah. Yeah, sure."

They both stood and brushed themselves off, heading back towards the pathway to the house. As they passed the cabana, Bucky gave it a salute.

"Thanks for being our refuge."

Steve laughed softly and saluted too.

They stopped when they got back to the patio and exchanged phone numbers. Steve knew it wouldn't be long until all the people out on the booze cruise would be back and the spell of today would be broken. He and Bucky stood looking at each other. Steve was desperately wondering if they were at the point where they could kiss, or, as his brain flipped out a little, if he should ask Bucky up to his room and whether it was the right move or a completely skeevy one, when Bucky offered his hand.

"Well, it was awesome hanging out with you, Steve. Thanks for being such a great Spring Break buddy."

Steve deflated a little, half in relief, half in disappointment. He smiled sadly and shook Bucky's outstretched hand. "Likewise. It was...great."

They held hands for a little over what was expected of a handshake before they both let go.

Bucky grinned but it wasn't as bright this time. "Guess I'll see you in New York."

"Yeah, have a safe flight back."

Bucky nodded and started to walk away. "You too. Goodbye, Steve."

"Goodbye," Steve said and watched as Bucky crossed the patio and disappeared around the side of the house, not looking back.

***

Steve's cab dropped him off at the airport and when he made his way inside, he checked the departures board to make sure his flight was on time and headed over to security, glad that he only had a carry-on.

He felt strangely empty. He had gone back to his room after Bucky had left and packed, getting into bed and not really sleeping. Pepper had been up that morning to see him off, Tony passed out somewhere in his sprawling house but with a message for Steve to catch up soon. It wasn't that Steve had been expecting anything to happen between him and Bucky but he wished he had been a little bolder at least. Still, they would hopefully see each other again soon.

He sighed and was considering what to pick up for breakfast when he heard a frantic voice shouting, "Steve! Hey Steve Rogers!"

Steve turned and Bucky was sprinting towards him, dodging people on the concourse. Steve's heart started to thump. What was he doing here? He stopped when he finally reached Steve, out of breath and red in the face.

"Bucky? I thought your flight wasn't until later?" Steve said.

"It isn't," Bucky panted. He held up a finger and caught his breath. After a minute he finally looked like he wasn't going to implode and swallowed. "So, I met this guy during Spring Break. Really great guy - funny, sweet, hot as hell."

Steve immediately felt himself flush. "Uh..."

Bucky held up his hands. "I know what you're thinking: Spring Break, hot guy, the cliché writes itself."

Steve just nodded.

"Except, it wasn't like that, or at least it didn't feel like that to me. I actually got to spend a couple of days getting to know this guy and it was...it was pretty amazing." His eyes never left Steve's.

"That sounds really nice," Steve managed.

"It was. We watched fireworks on the beach and he looked...well, he looked so damned _gorgeous_ and I really wished I had kissed him last night but I didn't want him to think I was out for the cheap shot. Being Spring Break and all."

Steve finally gave in, smiling so hard he thought his face would split. "He...he was thinking the exact same thing."

Bucky's face broke into a relieved grin. "He was?"

Steve nodded and put down his bag, taking a step closer. "Yeah. He's kind of hoping he can make up for it now and maybe ask you out on a date as soon as is humanly possible."

Bucky laughed softly and blushed a little himself which just made Steve like him even more. This was no cheap shot. "I'd like that."

"The kiss or the date?"

"Both," Bucky said, his eyes full of anticipation and amusement. "I know a kiss is supposed to come _after_ a date but - "

He was cut off as Steve leaned in and pressed their lips together. It was a soft kiss, nothing spectacular on the spectrum of kisses but they were both grinning like morons when they parted, faces close.

"I'm glad we're on the same page," Bucky said, a little breathily.

"So, can I take you out to dinner tomorrow night?" Steve asked.

"Just tell me where and when," Bucky replied with a dreamy smile. "Um, you'd better go. I don't want to hold you up too much with my dumb romantic gesture."

Steve laughed and leaned in to kiss Bucky again, brushing his thumb across Bucky's jaw. "I like dumb romantic gestures."

Bucky made a happy noise but then stepped back. "Get used to them. Okay, I left Nat outside in a cab that's still on the clock and you have a flight to catch. Tomorrow?"

Steve was beaming. "Yeah, tomorrow." He picked up his bag and watched as Bucky walked back through the concourse, stopping to look back every few seconds with a grin on his face.

Steve waved one last time and stepped into the security area, unable to stop smiling.

Spring Break hadn't been so bad after all.

 

 


End file.
